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W H O W E A R E .

1 'Looked After and Care 2 This can range from anyone currently in
Experienced Solidarity' (or LACES / the care system as a 'looked after child' living

LACE-SOLIDARITY) is a network of in foster care, a children's home, residential care,

individuals who have been under a child supportedliving, unaccompanied asylum seeker
care order as some point in their refuge, adoption services, youth prisoner etc and lism

life and had interactions with all those out of care as care leavers in whatever Cap ita
child protective services .
setting they find themselves now .

3 Initially our members 4 but by no means will

are currently based in it be UK exclusive and

the United Kingdom so we aim to reach out to

our analysis, commentary and and build our network

organising will most likely focus
from other care experienced
on care-related topics in the UK . communities across the world .
WHAT WE STAND FOR & AGAINST.

5 We stand for Socialism, 6 There are several hundred thousand care experienced r P ofiteering

people in the UK alone and millions more across the world
We are unapologetically
and we put forward the statement that from start to finish
political, We provide
of someone's time in care no matter how short or long, it
collective political solidarity,
has been political actions and political choices that have
not cold detached 'charity' . shaped it and contributed to your experience whilst in it .

8 Politics can do this because politics is
7 it was those in political power or
power and power is currently is in the
those with access to it that decided
how much funding should be cut wrong hands when it needs to be in yours,
from your local authority, how much
for children's protective services and care
to under staff your local social
services to be ran democratically under the
services, to cut your mental health
control And management of service users
provision, to close your local youth
and service workers, not for private Austerity
centre – nursery – women's refuge, to
companies profit or austerity politicians.
sell off and privatise local council
services and homes .

9 However a care-experienced political voice
8 Care experienced
individuals come from all in the grand scheme of things is barely seen
demographics but overwhelmingly or heard in the mainstream media, let alone a
most come from working-class socialist one. We aim to change to that. That's

communities and from 2008 onwards
why our political analysis will not be
since the finical crash capitalists
neutral, it will provide a platform to
have been making the working-class
fightback against both the Tories and any
pay for their mistake, giving the
Blairite enablers that do the Tories dirty
bankers bonuses whilst they tore our
work by passing on austerity cuts and
communities apart with austerity
supporting the for-profit marketisation of
cuts... with one of the biggest factors
Privatisation
of family breakdown and youth going child care services.
into care being poverty related.

10 We are not 'pro' or 10 We organise, fight and campaign against how child
'anti' children and young people care services are ran like a for-profit business,

going into care. The reasons for against how the The Financial Times, the paper of
youth going into care are complex choice for so many ‘Venture capitalists' or more

and multi-faceted but we are appropriately vulture capitalists stated that
against how the service is how foster care is a 'growth business ripe for

managed and whose interest consolidation'.To make money for share-holders, not
its ran in... in the interests of for all funding to go back into avenues of child

market forces and the profit welfare.
motive.

11a It's impossible to fit our entire
11b to reverse all austerity cuts, to
programme and ideas here but we will

expand it over time through our fully fund all support programmes p itation
Ex lo
different platforms and as our capacity
and packages for care-experienced
grows but our fundamentals would
users, to stop the failures of the
include to fight for the rights of care-
state where we have to rely on the
experienced community as service users

linked up with service workers (who are donations of charities but all our
key workers), to fully nationalise under
basic needs and more should be met
democratic public ownership all foster
by professional public sector services.
care and bring back in-house all council
child care services under a National

Care Service akin to the NHS.

12 LACES is an initiative of 13 We reach out to and support the wider
individual Socialist Party care- Labour movement of trade unions and

experienced members but you service user campaign groups, everyone
don't to be a member of one to be commodification
from 'Social Workers Against Austerity' –
a member of the other, as long as
'IWGB Foster Care branch' -Disabled People
we can find a point of unity over
Against the Cuts' and more, an injury to
a socialist and anti-austerity
one is an injury to all!.
programme.

14 If your care-experienced join LACES today for the fightback, to fight

for a society of the millions not millionaires, for care-experienced rights not profits.